Rarely, openings after renovation works are as relevant as today.
All of the people enjoying this December morning are aware that today is a historic day for Sitges. Today, after a long process of almost 5 years, we finally recovered the splendor that was only asleep during all this time, the elements of our heritage that represent like no other the uniqueness of Sitges. The newly opened facilities represent the grandeur of the cultural heritage that transformed Sitges in a benchmark of art, specially "modernisme" and "noucentisme". But Sitges is also capable of journeying through other periods of history.
It's been a long road with very difficult bumps, but despite the wild range of different opinions about HOW to do it, the unanimous voice of WHAT was a big roar above all. And the aforementioned WHAT is nothing more than the overwhelming need to preserve and enforce a heritage that belongs to Sitges, but also to the entire nation.
And that is why today is a day to say THANK YOU. Thank you all! Thanks to the authorities: Ministry, Catalan Government and Provincial Council of Barcelona for their financial contributions that have made possible the development of these works. Thanks to civil society organized on the platform that, at the time, three and a half years ago, made it politically possible paying heed to the opinion of citizens, that we could stop the works to achieve a result that we can see today, respecting our uniqueness and preserving the essential that had originally characterized it. And then, let me make a special mention to Mr.Salvador Esteve, President of the Barcelona Provincial Council, thanks to him the most critical moments of this process were not that difficult.
Thanks to politicians who obtained the investment. Thanks to the directors of the Consortium. Thanks to the architect, to all technical managers and companies, especially the joint venture (UTE), those who were there from the beginning of the project and those who were in place during the last phase of implementation.
Today we are all in luck. Sitges was able to preserve the essentials that made Rusiñol, at the end of the nineteenth century, choose not only to create here, but also to bequeath his holdings and transform our town into a magnet for creativity. His house, Cau Ferrat, shows again with the fidelity he requested, all his collections of art. And from today, Maricel Museum is a must for journeying though art from the 10th to the 20th century. A combination of the large collection Pérez Rosales with the collection of paintings of Sitges that, thanks to the new museum organization, takes even more relevance.
Our famous light and magic coming from the Mediterranean embracing us today, that attracted so many artist and intellectuals that fell in love with our community, was also the cause of the danger of deterioration of our heritage. But being here today shows that no east wind will destroy us. Far from damaging or shrinking us, we are now part during the last two months of a new state structure called Museum Network of Catalonia.
And while our museums were being renovated and uplifted, the cultural vitality of our town has not stopped and we managed to keep playing in the first division. Our local artists occupied a special place, Sitges has been in the news for his contemporary art collections thanks to the Stämpli Foundation, we have allocated space for music, theater and films, and also, we have succeeded in attracting foreign investments to create a university of performing arts unique in the state.
Sitges is not a political or administrative capital, but from today we are more than ever a true cultural capital. Culture is the hallmark of a people, and that is why, President Mas, we are proud to share it as a hallmark belonging to the identity of our Nation and our future.
Thank you very much.
